Judge weighs gag order in Roger Stone case, warns him against blabbing

The judge gave Stone's attorneys and the prosecution a week to submit their written opinions on the proposed gag order.

"My responsibility is to assure he has a fair trial", Jackson said, noting that it was ill-advised for Stone to defend his case on the "courthouse steps or talk show circuit".

Stone has missed no opportunity to speak to the press since his arrest last Friday, appearing nearly daily on Alex Jones' Infowars show to discuss his case and booking an appearance on Tucker Carlson Friday night, following a whirlwind schedule of interviews with Reuters, CBS, NBC, and other outlets.

Jackson, who imposed a strict "gag" order while overseeing the trial and ultimate conviction of former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort, acknowledged Stone had valid First Adendment rights to consider.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson criticized Stone media blitz following his arrest in connection to his seven-count indictment last week, expressing concern that his media appearances could taint a jury pool.

Stone, also a former Nixon campaign staffer, was arrested by more than two dozen heavily-armed Federal Bureau of Investigation agents earlier this week, on charges of obstruction and lying to Congress. Stone has been predictably shameless in the days since the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested him at his Fort Lauderdale home, threatening to appeal any gag order at an Infowars-sponsored press conference in D.C., posting videos on appropriate courtroom attire, and urging his Instagram followers to donate to his legal defense fund.

Jackson previously imposed a similar gag order on Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who was convicted by a Virginia jury a year ago on financial wrongdoing charges brought by Mueller and pleaded guilty to separate charges in Washington. The next hearing is set for March 14. The collected evidence on the hard drives has information from iCloud and email accounts, bank records, and digital financial content that dates back several years.

Stone is free on a $250,000 personal recognisance bond on the condition that he not possess or apply for a passport and not travel outside southern Florida, the Washington area and New York City.

In Stone's indictment, prosecutors charged that after the initial July 22, 2016, release of stolen emails, "a senior Trump campaign official was directed to contact Stone about any additional releases and what other damaging information Organization 1" had regarding the Clinton campaign. Trump denies any collusion and has called Mueller's investigation a witch hunt.

Stone and WikiLeaks and Assange have said they never communicated with each other.

Mr Stone, 66, a longstanding ally of the president, has previously vowed to resist any gagging order, saying on Tuesday: "I will fight and the deep state is in panic mode".

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